Leo stepped forward, eyes narrowing at the chained figure.
"Zama… Who is he?" Leo asked. "And why is he sleeping in chains like this?"
The slave master scratched his neck, his voice lowering. "Honestly, sir, I don't know much about him myself. But according to what my grandfather told my father—and what my father told me—this man… he's a Dragonoid."
Leo's brows furrowed. "Dragonoid? Wait… your grandfather and your father? You're telling me your family has been running this slave business for generations?"
The man nodded slowly. "Yeah. My grandfather started it when the empire began rejecting those who didn't fit into its clean image. My father continued it in secret, and now I do too. But as for him—" he gestured toward the chained man "—my father never said much. Every time I asked about him, he just told me 'that one has a tragic past,' and left it at that."
Leo glanced back at the man hanging in chains. His head was bowed, silver-grey hair falling over his face, but even on his knees, his body looked enormous. Muscles coiled under pale skin, and despite the dust and grime, there was something regal—dangerous—about his stillness.
"So… does that mean he's older than both of us?" Leo asked.
The slave master nodded again, this time with a hint of unease in his eyes.
Leo looked back at the man, voice quieter now. "Then… why does he look so young? I mean, he can't be more than twenty-four. Twenty-six at most."
"I don't know," the slave master admitted. "His body hasn't aged since the day I first saw him. Not even a little."
A heavy silence filled the dimly lit chamber, the only sound was the faint crackle of the lone candle.
Then Leo said, "Hmm… can you wake him up?"
The slave master shook his head. "That's something I can't do. He's been sleeping since the day I first saw him. Maybe even longer… Only my grandfather ever saw him awake."
Leo glanced at the chained figure. "Are Dragonoids strong? Do you have more of them?"
"Definitely strong," the slave master replied. "But they're extremely rare in this generation. Their race was nearly wiped out back in my grandfather's time. So maybe… he's one of the last ones left. I could sell him for a good price, but I think his mana core is already dead. The only reason he's still clinging to life is because of the aura he stored in the past. That's probably what's keeping his soul intact. But once that aura runs out… it's over. With a dead mana core, he can't generate more. No aura means no soul."
Leo asked calmly, "Do you know anything about the past of Dragonoids?"
The slave master shrugged. "Not a thing."
Leo thought to himself, This guy… he's not normal. With this mask, I can see inside his mana core… and I'm surprised by two things.
First—he hasn't moved for all these years, hasn't done anything. But most importantly, he never separated the aura from his mana core. If someone doesn't separate them over time, the mana core explodes. But his didn't. That's why this slave master thinks his core is dead. But maybe… it's not.
Second—and this is what really shocked me—he has two mana cores. That shouldn't be possible. Even if he were alive, handling aura separation from two cores is nearly impossible. If both cores lost control of their aura at once, the resulting pressure would cause a devastating explosion. Yet… he's still intact.
How did he store so much aura that it's been charging his soul for all these years? And just what kind of past does this Dragonoid have?
Well, maybe Lili can help me. She's lived over a thousand years.
Leo turned back to the slave master and said, "I want to buy him."
The slave master hesitated. "Sir, I try to be honest with my customers. I really think this is a bad decision. He might die in a few years without ever waking up. I even tried charging his mana core myself. It drained a ton of my own aura—and still, he didn't move. There's a big mystery behind his sleep. And even if you tried to sell his body parts, you wouldn't get much. No one these days even knows what a Dragonoid is."
Leo smirked and replied, "I'll still buy him. And just so you know… I'm not the kind of guy who sells body parts."
The slave master sighed, placing a hand on his forehead. "As you wish, sir…"
Leo walked toward the Dragonoid—Zama—and began unlocking the chains.
He didn't use a key.
He simply touched each one… and broke them apart with ease.
As the last chain shattered, Zama's body slumped forward and crashed into the dusty ground with a heavy thud.
Leo muttered under his breath, "Hmm… he's heavier as he looks."
As Leo touched the last chain, it cracked with a faint shimmer of aura and fell to the ground. Zama's body slumped forward, thudding into the dust.
"Huh, he's heavier than I thought," Leo muttered, brushing his palms together.
The slave master stepped forward and said, "Wait, let me bind him to you with the slave contract. It activates automatically if a slave attacks their master, so—"
He paused mid-sentence, then scratched his head. "Actually… this guy hasn't moved in decades. I don't even think he remembers how to attack. Might be overkill."
Leo smirked. "Yeah, no point in wasting a spell on a sleeping statue."
"Exactly!" the slave master grinned. "Finally, someone who gets it."
Leo nodded. "So, how much for him?"
The slave master's grin returned with a spark. "Two gold coins. Rare species, possibly the last of his kind—even if he's in deep sleep."
Leo frowned. "Two gold? He's literally a corpse with good posture!"
"Hey," the slave master shrugged, "that's the price of mystery and nostalgia. Take it or leave it."
Leo sighed, flipping the coins toward him. "Fine."
I bought him early… because I'm about to try something. If I'm right, he'll wake up. If I'm wrong—at least I got him before the price shot up.
Leo knelt beside Zama and placed his hand gently on the dragonoid's broad back. "Let's try it, Zama... the last dragonoid."
Leo's aura flowed from his palm in a slow, steady stream—purple and pulsing. It slipped into Zama's body, diving deeper... until it reached both mana cores.
They were dim, almost lifeless. But as Leo's aura entered them, a faint glow began to return. Like cold embers catching flame, both cores slowly lit up—pale at first, then vibrant.
Suddenly—
Everything went black.
Leo blinked and looked around. "Wait… where am I?"
The world around him was pitch-black. An eerie silence pressed against his ears.Just a moment ago I was with that slave merchant… now what is this place?
A deep voice echoed behind him.
"So, you're the one who woke me up?"
Leo turned sharply.
There—standing tall with an overwhelming presence—was Zama.
His body radiated with dense aura. His long white hair flowed down to his back, and his once-closed eyes were now fully open—glowing like molten silver. He was massive, muscular, and scarred from battles long past.
Leo stared, speechless.